An ADELINE would launch into orbit, then detach its upper stages to deploy a payload like a traditional rocket. The lower stage (containing the rocket's engine) would then fly back to base using twin turboprop engines mounted in a pair of wings and land on a runway like an airplane. This contrasts with SpaceX's method of relying solely on the rocket's engine to power the return flight and then landing vertically on a water or land-based site.

Words of wisdom applicable to a wide variety of situations and circumstances. Photo and caption, c/o One Tusk.

Airbus' key goal is to recover the first stage which contains the engine, avionics and propulsion bay, and which together comprise 80 percent of the rocket's total value, enabling significant cost savings. Airbus estimates that ADELINE can achieve savings of 20-30% on recurring launch costs. Airbus also says that ADELINE's turboprop engines will enable it to return to Earth with half the fuel needed by (and with less of a performance hit than) SpaceX's vehicle. ADELINE project manager Benoit Isaac stated:

This is our way of showing that it’s not just America that knows how to innovate. We can innovate here in Europe as well and we want our 140,000 colleagues in the rest of Airbus to know about it.

For all of Airbus's spirited rhetoric, ADELINE's challenge to SpaceX comes up short. Airbus has allotted ADELINE a total budget of just €5Mln EUR ($7CDN CDN) and no hardware (aside from a small powered prototype of the first stage) has been built.

Francois Auque, head of Airbus’s Space Systems division has stated that the firm's focus is on producing its new Ariane 6 rocket, an expendable launcher set to debut in 2020 at a cost of €90Mln EUR ($125.5Mln CDN) per launch.

“Ariane 6 is our absolute top priority,” Auque said. “Adeline comes afterwards.” While marching forward with its left foot, Airbus' right remains stuck in the past.

Airbus' unveiling of ADELINE, far from causing trouble for SpaceX, has instead marked its ascendance. While SpaceX's innovations have spurred its rivals to adapt, those same rivals are shackled by shareholders, existing supply chains, legacy hardware and conflicting agendas. SpaceX's vertical integration and single leader pursuing a singular vision give the company a unique freedom.